Table



NOV. 17, 1953 p RECORDS 2,659,642

TABLE Filed NOV. 9, 1949 mail IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIlllllllllllll IN1/ENoR. PAUL EEconps,

Patented Nov. 17, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TABLE Paul Records,Elwood,` Ind.

Application November- 9, 1949, Serial No. 126,390

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a table adapted to provide for the storage andconcealment of chairs suitable for use at the table. Such a table is ofvalue in small apartments, in trailers, or in other situations where oorspace is restricted.

It is an object of the invention to provide a table which, while stillcapable of performing all common functions of a table, will in additionprovide a space within which chairs may be stored and concealed. Afurther object of the invention is to provide for a table achair-supporting means which will facilitate insertion of the chairsinto the storage space and their withdrawal therefrom. Still anotherobject of the invention Ais to produce a chairstoring table which can besimply and economically manufactured, which will be Vof attractiveappearance, and which will prove sturdy and durable in use.

In carrying out the invention, I form the table preferably as-adrop-leaf table having a legsupported center section and drop leaveshinged thereto. Within the center section of the table there is slidablymounted a chair-support adapted to be partially withdrawn through eitherend of the center section. The chairs, which desirably are of thefoldable type in which the back and legs fold against opposite sides ofthe seat, are supported in the slidable support, which is desirablyformed to receive two chairs at each end. The sides of the centertable-section are closed by suitable panels, while the ends of thesections are provided with doors which can be opened to permitwithdrawal of the slidable chair support or closed to conceal theslidable support and any chairs therein and also to prevent accidentalwithdrawal of the sliding chair support.

The accompanying drawing illustrates the invention: Fig. 1 is aperspective view illustrating the table extended and showing thechair-:supporting slide partially withdrawn; and Fig. 2 is a sideelevation of the table with portions thereof broken away to illustratethe interior construction.

The table shown in the drawing has an open, generally rectangular baseframe IIJ from the corners of which legs I I extend upwardly to supportthe center section I2 of the table-top. Extending between the legs II ateach side of the center section is a panel or wall I3 providing amounting for pivoted brackets I 4 which may be swung outwardly about avertical axis to support a drop leaf l5 hinged adjacent a side edge ofthe center section I2 of the top.

Supported for sliding movement between the two walls I3 on oppositesides of the center section is a slide designated generally by thereference numeral I'I and comprising parallel side rails I 8, end crossmembers I9, and a center cross member 20. To provide for the slidingsupport of the slide I'I, the outer faces of the rails I8 may begrooved, as indicated at 2I, to receive rollersl 22 or other suitableslide-supporting elements mounted on the inner faces of the side wallsof the center section.

Posts 2t' braced by obliquely extending braces 25 extend downwardly fromthe midpoints of the side rails I8 and have their lower endsinterconnected by a cross member 2liv disposed in a horizontal plane. Ifdesired, a second cross member 2'I, disposed in a vertical plane, mayalso extend between the posts 24 intermediate the width of thehorizontal cross member 26. The slide I'I is adapted for the Support 0ffolding chairs, two of which may be received in each end of the slide.The chairs, themselves form no part of my invention. The chairs shown inthe drawing are of a common type in which rear legs 39 and front legs 3|fold against the bottom of a seat 32, While the chair-back 33 foldsforwardly f over the top of the seat. In the chair shown,

the rear legs and back are connected with the seat through metal hingeplates 34, and the rear legs 30 and back 33 project beyond the rear edgeof the seat 32 when the chair is collapsed, as will be clear from Fig.2. To adapt the slide I'I for support of such chairs, there may besecured to the inner face of each end cross member I9 a metal platehaving an inwardly extending flange 35. When supported on a slide I'I ofthe construction described, each chair is received at one front cornerof the seat on the cross member 26 of the slide, while the hinge plates34 at the opposite corner of the seat rest on the flange 35. To preventinjury to the chairs, the cross members 20, 26, and 21 may be faced withcloth or other cushioning material 35. If desired, a divider 36 may bearranged in the slide to extend between each end member I9 and thecenter cross-member 20 and keep the two chairs at each end of the slidefrom engaging each other.

In order to conceal the slide I'I and chairs supported thereby, each endof the center section may be provided with a door 3l. Conveniently, sucha door is supported through trunnions 38, which extend outwardly fromthe door for reception in horizontal grooves 39 provided on the innerface of the side walls of the center section. With the trunnions 38 inthe outer ends of the grooves 39, the door 3'I may occupy the verticalposition shown at the right in Fig. 2, in which position it closes theend of the space between the side walls I3 of the center section. Whenit is desired to withdraw the slide I1, the lower end of the door isswung outwardly to bring the door into a horizontal position, and thedoor is then pushed inwardly of the table until it lies wholly below thecenter section I2 of the tabletop, as illustrated at the left in Fig. 2.In this position,A the d oor may rest on transverse slats 4I whichextend between the side walls of the center section below the grooves39. Spring detents 42 mounted on the inner faces of the legs II may beemployed to hold each door 31 releasably in closed position.

The chairs, when stored, are in collapsed condition and occupy thepositions illustrated at the left in Fig. 2 and at the right in Fig. l,each chair being supported at its upper outer corner on a flange 35 andat itsI lower inner corner on the cross member 26. The slide I1 liesbetween the walls I3 which, in co-operation with the closed doors 31,conceal the slide and chairs. When it is desired to use the chairs, thedoor 31 at one end of the center section is swung upwardly and slidinwardly into the position illustrated at the left in Fig. 2, and theslide I1 is withdrawn, as shown in Fig. 1, until the inner end of thechair clears the end of the center section of the table-top, whereuponone or both chairs in that end of the slide may be removed. If a chairor chairs from the opposite end of the slide are desired, the oppositedoor 31 is raised and the slide reversed to extend through the openingthus created. When the desired number of chairs have been removed, theslide is restored to its center position illustrated in Fig. 2, and thedoors 31 may then be closed.

It will be noted that when the doors 31 are in their vertical or closedpositions they not only conceal the slide I1 and any chairs carriedthere- 4 by but also serve to maintain the slide in its center position.This feature is of importance when the table is used in a trailer, forit prevents road shocks from causing the slide to work out from beneaththe center position I2 of the top. Also of importance when the table isused as in a trailer is the fact that each chair when in place issupported at diagonally opposite corners. With the chair so supported,the line joining the two points of the support passes close to thecenter of gravity of the chair, and road shocks have little tendency tocause undesirable swinging of the suspended chair.

I claim as my invention:

In a table, a floor-supported center section having a top, parallelwalls extending downwardly from said top, a slide supported for slidingmovement beneath said top and between and parallel to said walls, meanson said slide for supporting a folded chair, and a drop leaf pivotallymounted on said center section adjacent to the top thereof for swingingmovement between horizontal and vertical positions about a horizontalaxis parallel to the direction of slide movement.

PAUL RECORDS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 965,099 Forgy July 19, 1910 1,183,502 Stockham May 16, 19161,227,705 Ulrich May 29, 1917 1,250,946 Belden Dec. 25, 1917 1,546,425Young July 21, 1925 2,109,869 Ross Mar. 1, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS NumberCountry Date 58,574 Switzerland Aug. 17, 1923

